The Manchester City target Pablo Zabaleta claims that he turned down an offer from Juventus in favour of moving to England, describing the Premier League as a "paradise for players".

"The offer is impossible to reject and not just because of the money," said the Argentina international, who is expected to sign from Espanyol today after City agreed to pay the €8m (£6.45m) buy-out clause in his contract. "I have known about the interest of Manchester City for some months but my club have not wanted to negotiate. Juventus also wanted me but I wanted to come to England, and to Manchester."

Espanyol had been keen to hold on to the 23-year-old defender, but agreed this morning to allow him to travel to England for a medical after receiving a formal offer from City yesterday evening. "Until this moment, Espanyol have tried to convince Zabaleta to continue in Barcelona, but the defender has shown his determination to continue his career in the Premier League," read a statement from the club.

Zabaleta confirmed that he was intent on a move to City. "I was happy at Espanyol and will always be very grateful to the club but these chances do not come along very often," Zabaleta said. "The Premier League is a paradise for players and that is why I want to play here. In Beijing, the Manchester City scouts watched the Argentina matches and decided to do the deal. I hope to fulfil all their expectations and I'm looking forward to playing in the Uefa Cup - it's a great competition."

Zabaleta joined Espanyol from San Lorenzo in 2005 and has been a regular member of the Barcelona-based club's first team, helping them win the 2006 Copa del Rey.